SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Gluecksspiel (GGL), the Federal Authority of German Gambling, will host its first “joint exchange meeting of state coordinators” in Halle.
The meeting will convene representatives from Germany’s 16 Federal States (Bundesländer). They will share their specific experiences and challenges in prevention work in the online gambling sector since the inception of the Fourth Interstate Gambling regime (GlüNeuRStv) on 1 July 2021.
Hosting the Bundesländer, GGL emphasized its objective to “intensify cooperation” with the public health institutes of each Federal State. GGL envisions itself as the “coordinating entity” for all stakeholders in the GlüNeuRStv market.
By consolidating feedback from prevention institutions, GGL aims to gain deeper insights into implementing player protection regulations as mandated by law.
GGL Co-President Ronald Benter explained: “We have achieved this goal. After an initial board meeting last year, a personal meeting took place between the state coordinators and other GGL representatives from various specialist departments, providing us with crucial insights for future cooperation.”
At the start of 2023, GGL assumed governance over Germany’s new gambling marketplace. It prioritized the implementation of new safer gambling protections and safeguards against unlicensed activities.
Supporting broader collaboration, Co-President Benjamin Schwanke stated: “We see ourselves as a central contact point for questions about research needs, analysis of new market developments and trends, prevention, player protection, and specialized aspects of online gambling.
“Given that state specialist offices maintain close ties with regional addiction counseling centers, specialist outpatient clinics, and the addiction support system, the insights we gain from our close cooperation with these offices and state coordinators are invaluable for our work.”
This summer, GGL initiated its first tenders for independent studies related to year-one assessments of the GlüNeuRStv market, focusing on player protections, consumer safeguards, and gambling prevention.
However, this week GGL responded to criticism regarding its tender process on the evaluation of player protections. The University of Bremen was highlighted as the sole institution to have submitted a bid.
